Ramblingsrecent graduate entering the world of library science, with an emphasis on babblings, ramblings, and books

Andrew Sullivan and free speech

I have been reading through Andrew Sullivan’s blog today, as a result of having to read an article of his arguing about same-sex marriage for my ‘English Writing:Marriage and Culture’ class. I have truly enjoyed looking at his different entries; for a conservative gay man, who is deepy religious, something I’m definitely not, he has a unique and refreshing logic that you don’t see often. Another thing about his blog was that I’d actually seen it before; it was mentioned in one of the gay magazines I get, Advocate or Out, not sure which, but they had mentioned checking it out. I wrote it down, but never did. Being in college, I have way more than enough reading to do. But I’m glad that I’ve finally taken the time to look at it. Now to just do that with the other blogs I’ve seen mentioned.Anywho, I was going to talk about an article Sullivan had about President Bush’s blatant abuse of power, but seeing as that will just get my blood pressure up needlessly, I figured I’d focus on another one that discusses the decreasing free speech going on in the world.I’m sure everyone has heard about the Scientology episode of South Park. I,bmyself, don’t watch the show ’cause I find it to be a tad crude for my tastes, but it does worry me that television companies have pulled the episode. As Sullivan said in his article, South Park “has mocked Catholicism, Mormonism, evangelicanism, and even featured a cartoon Mohammed as a super-hero” not to mention the show mocks all other lifestyles, races and walks of life. Why should Scientology get off the hook? And then Isaac Hayes quitting the show, “accusing it of religious bigotry” makes absolutely no sense to me, especially when a month beforehand he showed he had no problem with it. From the looks of it, either someone told him to make a big deal out of it, OR he was fine so long as the show didn’t mock anything related to him. If you can’t take the heat, then stay out of the kitchen. I don’t like it when people dish out all kind of crap to you, and then cry when you give them a little dose of their own medicine. But anyways, I agree with Sullivan that the fact that companies are willing to yank the episode off the air shows somewhat troubling times ahead. People in lofty/high positions open themselves up to mockery and they just need to learn to take it. If they don’t want that much attention, then they shouldn’t be in said high position.